But Democrat Dannel P. Malloy, who has been governor for less than five months, says the state should move forward with the long-stalled Route 11 in southeastern Connecticut.

Malloy made the announcement Monday morning, surrounded by Courtney, the state's environmental and transportation commissioners, and a federal highway official. The state legislature and Malloy are still reviewing a proposal to allow the creation of a toll on the new highway to help pay for the project.

"I'm open to tolling for the building of new roads, particularly this road,'' Malloy said Monday at the state Capitol. "What we're announcing today is we're moving forward. This is a project that goes a long ways back.''

The project actually dates to 1972 - when construction was halted when funding ran dry. Malloy could not provide an estimate on the cost of the four-lane highway, which some have estimated at $800 million for both the highway and the highly expensive interchange connection to Interstate 95 that includes about three miles of highway reconstruction on I-95.

"The problem is we just don't have all the information we need,'' Malloy said when asked about the projected costs. He added that he would not use the figure of $1 billion because the final design has not been set.

Despite Monday's announcement, construction would not start for at least 2 1/2 years as additional studies are being conducted. One of the items being studied is the use of tolls and the financing of the project, which will be handled by Wilbur Smith Associates. The rest of the project, including environmental impacts, will be studied by Meriden-based BL Companies, which had previously been headed by former state Rep. Robert Landino, a once-prominent Democrat at the Capitol. Landino no longer runs the company. While the consulting firms have been selected, their fees are still being negotiated.

The long-stalled project has been blocked by numerous environmental reviews, but many politicians have pledged to build the final 8.3 miles of the highway that would connect from Salem to I-95 at the border of East Lyme and Waterford.

Simmons probably spent more time on the project than any other official during the past decade, and his advocacy was made to leaders at the highest levels.

In September 2002, Simmons personally spoke with Vice President Dick Cheney aboard Air Force 2 as they were flying together from Washington, D.C. to Connecticut for a campaign fundraiser for Simmons. They studied a map of the region with the precise route for the final miles of the uncompleted highway.

In addition, Simmons discussed the issue multiple times with Christie Todd Whitman, who was powerful at the time as the Environmental Protection administrator under then-President George W. Bush. "She agreed with me,'' Simmons said of Whitman.

But Simmons said that Malloy's announcement does not push anything forward, and no further studies are needed.

"We don't need any money to study this thing any more,'' Simmons told Capitol Watch in an interview. "We need money to finish it. We don't need to study it any more. Not good enough. We've studied it to death. There's nothing left to study. All these studies do is waste money and waste time. The DEP has so much paper on this project that you would have to cut down a forest to produce that amount of paper. You name it. We studied it. Nobody wants to finish it. All they want to do is study it. All it is is political palaver.''

Malloy's spokeswoman, Colleen Flanagan, responded, "A big reason why Route 11 has never been finished is because there have been years of sporadic - and now outdated - studies that were completed and then ignored or forgotten about. What Governor Malloy is proposing is a realistic timeframe to complete all of the studies -- about 2.5 years -- that need to be done prior to construction beginning. There is nothing fictitious about his commitment - first as a candidate and now as a Governor - to making this highway a reality.''

A largely friendly crowd of union members and Democrats came out Monday night to greet Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in Hartford - a city that supported him by more than 7 to 1 in the election as he became the first Democratic governor in two decades.

They did not complain much at Malloy's town hall meeting about his plans to hike the state income tax, boost the sales tax, and impose a "luxury tax'' on high-end cars, jewelry and yachts that has prompted opposition in Fairfield County.

Instead, they called on Malloy to tax the rich, and they cheered the idea of increasing taxes on corporations.

After one speaker asked Malloy to close loopholes that favor the wealthy, Malloy said, "There are lots of things in this budget for you to be proud of, including the throwback rule.''

The "throwback rule'' is a complicated tax that would raise corporate taxes by $40 million over the next two years and is strongly opposed by the 10,000-member Connecticut Business and Industry Association, the state's largest business lobby.

During a mixture of positive and negative comments from the crowd, several speakers said they had worked on Malloy's campaign last fall and others wore shirts that sported union affiliations.

The gathering of about 300 people was the 8th town hall meeting that Malloy has held as he travels around the state to explain his two-year, $40 billion budget that is designed to close a projected $3.3 billion deficit in the fiscal year that starts in July. Malloy will travel to his hometown of Stamford tonight and then New Haven on Wednesday. He heads next Monday to Greenwich, where the state legislators have expressed opposition to Malloy's proposed tax hikes.

Gov.-elect Dan Malloy made two additional appointments today, tapping transition team press aide Colleen Flanagan as his director of communications and Arielle Reich as his director of intergovernmental affairs/special assistant to the governor.

Flanagan was a familiar presence in Connecticut news stories during the 2010 election cycle, when she was the sharp-tongued spokeswoman for the state Democratic party. She also held communications jobs with U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd (including serving as his national press sercretary during his presidential run) and North Carolina Sen. Kay Hagan.

"Colleen is smart, tough, and she really understands the old and new media," said Malloy said in a statement announcing the appointments. "Given the way communications has changed dramatically over the past few years, it's more important than ever that we're in constant touch with the people we were elected to serve. Colleen understands that I'm 100% committed to having an Administration that is open, transparent, and accessible. She's a person I trust to be a strong voice for my Administration."

Reich has a long history with Malloy, serving as deputy campaign manager, as well as his executive aide when he was mayor of Stamford. She also worked on Ned Lamont's 2006 U.S. Senate run.

"Arielle worked for me in the Mayor's office in Stamford, on the campaign trail, and during this transitional phase," Malloy said in the statement. "She knows me as well as anyone, and she is my right-hand person. Arielle's strength is that she makes things happen - fast. I've also come to rely a great deal on her judgment. She'll be a tremendous asset to this Administration."

Just as things are heating up in the weeks before the Nov. 2 election comes word that Colleen Flanagan is coming back.

"With a little over seven weeks until election day, the Connecticut Democratic Party has kicked into high gear. As part of that effort, I'm joining the party to do some communications and strategic consulting on races up and down the ballot'' Flanagan wrote in an email to reporters.

"I'll be working closely with party Communications Director Kate Hansen, and you'll be hearing a lot from both of us. There's a lot to get done over the next 50-or-so days, and I'm excited to be back at the party during this critical election cycle."

Flanagan left the state party earlier this year after U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd announced he wasn't running for reelection to take a job with Dodd.

When state Democratic Party spokeswoman Colleen Flanagan came to a Christmas party in the state Capitol press room, she brought a chocolate cake with green writing from one of the top bakeries in Hartford - Mozzicato DePasquale's Bakery and Pastry Shop on Franklin Avenue.

Placed on a table in the historic press room, the dessert said, "My Race Is Going To Be A Piece of Cake'' and it was signed, "Love, Chris.''

At that moment, in mid-December, Dodd was trailing in the Quinnipiac Poll against the two Republican frontrunners in the U.S. Senate race - former U.S. Rep. Rob Simmons and World Wrestling Entertainment entrepreneur Linda McMahon.

Gov. M. Jodi Rell, who attended the party, appeared stunned when an attendee suggested that she look at the cake. She questioned whether Dodd had actually sent the tasty dessert.

State GOP chairman Chris Healy was also stunned - enough to prompt him to take a picture for posterity.

Now we know why state Democratic party spokeswoman Colleen Flanagan has been so quiet lately. Since U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd announced that he won't seek re-election, her constant torrent of barbed press releases have slowed to a trickle.

The Attack Husky is trading life on the often cutthroat campaign trail for the more genteel world of a political staffer. As of Monday, Flanagan will be working in Dodd's Hartford office.

"The opportunity to work for Chairwoman Nancy DiNardo and the party during this incredibly exciting election cycle has been a fantastic one, and an experience from which I've learned a lot,'' Flanagan said in a press release.

Yet even in her swan song, Flanagan couldn't pass up the opportunity to slip in a snarky comment or two about the Republicans.

"While

"I'll miss the back-and-forth with my good friends Chris Healy, Jim Barnett, Ed Patru, and the rest of the gang on the other side of the aisle, I won't miss the constant buzz from my BlackBerry indicating a Google alert for any one of the 563 candidates from all parties running for various offices throughout the state, the general stress and anxiety associated with campaigns, or watching Linda McMahon make cameos in WWE storylines and Rob Simmons pull yet another teabag out of his pocket."

For the time being at least, Justin Kronholm, executive director of the state Democratic party, will handle public relations.

A popular attorney general looking to ascend to the U.S. Senate seems all but assured of victory in a liberal New England state. Suddenly, in the eleventh hour, the Republican candidate surges and the GOP believes the unthinkable is within their grasp.

That's the scenario playing out in Massachusetts, where the once dull special election to fill the seat left vacant by Ted Kennedy's death is turning into thriller.

Veteran political handicapper Stuart Rothenberg moved the race into the toss-up category and a new Suffolk University/7 News poll actually puts Republican state Sen. Scott Brown ahead of Democratic AG Martha Coakley by 4 percentage points. That's within the margin of error, but still -- this is Massachusetts we're talking about!

To the Republicans running for Senate in Connecticut, whose own worlds were rocked just a week ago when weakened Democratic incumbent Chris Dodd's withdrew from the contest, the Bay State holds several important lessons.

House Republican leader Larry Cafero had been keeping his decision about whether to run for governor secret, but the process was speeded up Thursday when an e-mail was sent out by mistake.

The e-mail, written by Cafero's press secretary, accidentally went to more than 50 newspaper, radio, and television reporters and editorial writers. The initial message went out at 10:49 a.m., but the author, Patrick O'Neil, scrambled to send out a second message - only two minutes later - that asked for the e-mail to be recalled.

The message indicated that Cafero would meet with the editorial board of his hometown paper, The Norwalk Hour, and that they had agreed to keep his intentions secret under an embargo because Cafero will be holding a press conference at 2 p.m. Monday.

"Larry, we're all set with The Hour,'' O'Neil's message said. "They'll have the editorial board and a writer waiting for you at 10 a.m. They've agreed to the embargo and were much appreciative of the advance notice and exclusive interview. Jared Ferrari, the managing editor, will be coordinating the deal.''

Former U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Tom Foley announced Thursday that he is running for governor, dropping out of the U.S. Senate race for Christopher Dodd's seat.

In a speech that lasted about six minutes, Foley gave no details about how he would solve the state's long-running budget problems or whether he would propose cutting taxes. In a question-and-answer period with reporters at a downtown Hartford hotel, Foley also declined to give details about spending or health care. He said he would be forming a policy committee and then consulting them before making any announcements on specific issues.

Foley, 57, of Greenwich, is the wealthiest Republican in the race and said he would "probably not use the public campaign financing." He said he had "no idea" how much of his own money he would spend on the race.

If Foley spends his own money, he could far outspend the other candidates in the race. Under the state's campaign financing law, a candidate who raises $250,000 in amounts of $100 or less will qualify for $1 million in public funds for a primary and $3 million in public funds for the general election.

But if a wealthy candidate spends $6 million in personal funds, the public financing system would allow a maximum public grant of $6 million. As such, a candidate spending $12 million of his own money could outspend an opponent by a 2-to-1 margin.

Foley is the second Republican to announce his candidacy, one day after Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele of Stamford formally announced he would run.

After Foley finished his brief announcement speech, he stepped away from the podium in a small, truncated ballroom that had about 20 seats and a raised platform for television cameras. When a television reporter, sitting in the front row, asked the first question, Foley responded, "This actually was not a news conference.''

An aide then announced that Foley would first be speaking with his friends who had traveled to Hartford for his announcement in the second-floor room at the Hartford Hilton. After Foley chatted with his friends, he then talked briefly with reporters for about another six minutes outside of the room where he announced.

When asked if he would use public financing, Foley said, "We haven't decided, but probably not, probably not use the public campaign financing.''

Foley also declined to say whether, as governor, he would push for Connecticut to "opt out'' of the public option in the national health care reform bill that is being discussed in the U.S. Senate.

"Again, we're going to put together a policy team and come up with policy recommendations,'' he said.

The press conference ended abruptly and on a testy exchange after a campaign aide had been announcing there would be "one more question'' that Foley would answer.

"I'm going to take one more question, so you can decide'' who asks it, Foley said before a TV reporter asked a question.

"I'm sorry. I gotta run,'' Foley then said during a public radio reporter's question as he turned around and started to walk away without answering.

"Don't you think you should be standing here and answering all our questions until we're finished?'' asked one Fairfield County newspaper reporter.

"Thank you very much,'' Foley said as he stepped away. "I appreciate it.''

"Is that a yes or a no?'' the reporter asked.

"There will be plenty of time to talk during the campaign,'' a campaign aide responded.